Why Jordan is More Expensive than Just Nike

Many people are probably wondering whether Jordan and Nike are one and the same. Whilst Nike owns the Jordan Brand, Jordan shoes cost far much more than just Nike’s. Perhaps because the company is built on the foundation of the legendary, and often called, the greatest of all time, basketball player, Michael Jordan. Jordan’s name was first used on a shoe in the early 80’s when Nike created a basketball shoe specifically for Michael Jordan. The shoe was aptly named ‘Air Jordan’, and was later on released to the public in late 1984. Since then, many different versions of the shoe have been released with the brand settling on a trend of an annual release in more recent times. Each year’s release is marked with hype and a variety of emotions from its cult-like following, and a variety of changes and modifications in each shoe. Fans wait with anticipation for release date. Often in past years, the shoe would sell out on the release date!

From the onset, the Jordan shoe was not cheap. However, in recent times, the cost of a re-sold pair of Air Jordans has been listed at a high of $104,000 (The Air Jordan 12 Flu Game 2018)! Considering that the shoe was made for Michael Jordan, who has been ranked as the Greatest Player of all Time, it is no wonder that the shoe costs as much as it does. In addition to this, the shoe is designed as a premium, high performance shoe, with cutting edge technology invested in its creation.

Current releases of the shoe are limited in number and often worn by famous musicians, athletes and other celebrities. This creates more hype with its fan base, and as market forces dictate, limited supply with high demand often forces prices of products up.

The Jordan Brand has now moved on from solely producing the Air Jordan shoes, to athletic and casual clothes, as well as other basketball shoes. The brand has also contracted athletes in other sports such as baseball to wear its sportswear. It continues to sign up new endorsement deals worth millions of dollars every year, raking up more revenue for the brand.

With its focus on athletes and celebrities, the brand markets premium quality items specifically focusing on higher end product purchasers. The products carry the original ‘Jumpman’ from the Air Jordan shoe and not the Nike swoosh log which is carried by all other Nike wear. In an era of declining sales of luxury sports wear, annual sales for the Jordan brand account for a significant percentage of Nike’s earnings. In 2017, Nike reported sales revenue of $3.1 billion solely from the Jordan brand. The total Nike brand sales for the same period was $28.7 billion.

Having latched onto, and invested in a brilliant marketing plan from the onset, the Jordan brand has managed to make record sales over the years. It’s no wonder then, that while Brand Jordan sits under its ‘mother brand’, Nike, it is a strong brand, and without doubt, more expensive than just Nike.